The 2nd year of the partnership between Leon’s, a prominent Canadian furniture retailer, and the Toronto Raptors, NBA basketball team, aimed to create an exclusive, limited-edition coffee table to “Bring Home a Piece of History” to fan’s homes. Each one-of-a-kind coffee table is made from a piece of the Raptors' 25th Anniversary "95 Rewind Court," played on by the team at Scotiabank Arena during the 2019-20 NBA season.
Through this partnership, Leon’s want to develop a strategy that incentivizes Raptors fans to purchase Leon’s products, to drive traffic to Leon’s stores, produce engagement from Raptors audience with Leon’s brands and create a long term impact.
Each table is constructed using the genuine court from the Raptors' 25th Anniversary "95 Rewind Court," where the team played at Scotiabank Arena during the 2019-20 NBA Season, infusing every coffee table with a piece of basketball history. Expertly cut and built by hand, every frame is a testament to fine craftsmanship, ensuring that no two tables are alike. To authenticate their uniqueness, all pieces bear a labeled plaque and certification of authenticity, accompanied by a map detailing their specific location on the court.
Several marketing campaigns were initially planned for this unique coffee table; however, due to COVID-19, major events like the nationwide road tour, moving between various Leon’s store locations, were regrettably canceled. These events would have featured raffle draws offering customers the chance to win the coveted coffee table.
Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19, the campaign managed to captivate a broad audience and generate excitement. Leveraging Leon's and Raptors' social media platforms, posts and stories directed subscribers and followers to a dedicated landing page on Leon's website, offering detailed information about the exclusive coffee table and providing an opportunity to enter email addresses for a chance to win. This strategic approach not only created buzz but also facilitated the expansion of Leon's email subscriber base. Winners were then chosen from this pool, rewarding both loyal and newly engaged customers.
Despite canceling the road tour, the coffee table marketing campaign was a success. Engagement on Leon's social media grew, doubling email subscriptions from 18,000 to 35,000. The campaign also attracted a younger audience, boosting brand awareness.
Being part of this one-of-a-kind project has been truly rewarding. Collaborating within the team and the Raptors team provided invaluable learning experiences in marketing and creative strategies and approach. From the initial brainstorming sessions to witnessing the creation process from scratch to the final product, the excitement was palpable. However, we faced challenges along the way, such as cost constraints and COVID-19. Despite our initial plans, we had to opt for a simpler box design, cut marketing budgets that were not working out to stay within budget. Furthermore, due to COVID-19, a lot of exciting marketing opportunities had to be canceled due to safety of staff and customers. Nevertheless, I take pride in contributing to the creation of something exceptional that will be cherished by fans. Furthermore, being honoured and receiving recognition from the CMAs (Canadian Marketing Awards) for this marketing campaign was incredibly rewarding after all the hard work that was put it in this one-of-a-kind project.